May Day

International Workers' Day

Since the late 19th century May Day has been associated with workers' rights and the international socialism movement. May 1st is designated as International Workers' Day (or Labour / Labor Day) and is a public holiday in many countries. In The US Labor Day falls at the beginning of September.

May Day, 1907
Crane, Walter
Buy this Giclee Print at AllPosters.com

International Workers' Day

May 1st is linked with the rights of workers, in particular the struggle for a decent guaranteed working day. In the past the working day was often defined as "sunrise to sunset". This could lead to extremely long days. Working conditions were also frequently unsafe.

Throughout the latter half of the 19th century demands grew for a maximum working day of eight hours. In 1884 the American Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions unilaterally declared an eight hour working day to commence from 1st May 1886. Needless to say this demand was not acceeded to by the employers.

On May 1st 1886 the unions organised a strike to push their demands for an eight hour working day. The protests were focused on Chicago, although it is estimated that some 300,000 people across the US joined in the strike. Despite the masses of people and their anger, the demonstrations were basically peaceful.

Haymarket

On May 3 1886 fighting broke out on the picket line outside McCormick Harvesting Machine plant in Chicago. Police opened fire and two strikers were killed. As a result of this, local union activists arranged a public meeting for the following day to protest at what they claimed was police brutality.

On May 4 the public meeting took place in Chicago's Haymarket Square. Due to poor weather conditions it was sparsely attended. That proved to be a blessing in disguise.

No-one knows exactly what happened. What is without doubt is that someone threw a bomb. The police opened fire. In the carnage eight police officers and about the same number of civilians were killed. Many more being injured.

It's difficult to say how many of these were a result of the original bomb and how many a result of the police fire.

The Haymarket Martyrs

In June 1886 eight prominent labour activists were arrested and charged with murder over the Haymarket bomb. Today the trial is widely condemned as a kangaroo court. All eight were found guilty. Four were hanged and one committed suicide. In 1893 all eight received a pardon from Governor Altgeld.

In memory of the events of May 1886 and the Haymarket Martyrs, in 1889 the 1st of May was declared International Workers' Day by the Second Socialist International in Paris.

The US has refused to honour May 1st as a celebration of the worker and instead the American "Labor Day" takes place at the beginning of September.